Daniel Agbor|4 October 2016
STREET PROTESTS IN CALABAR
-By Daniel Agbor
"To you young people, Take Back your Country…it is your future they are toying with". This statement is credited to Mr. Peter Obi who in his recent media chat on the act of governance and how he was so successful said the above. It is good to bring this to light especially in the recently concluded solidarity moves by the National Youth Council of the Cross River State wing.
As reported by Ike Uchechukwu of the Vanguard Newspaper ahead of December 9, 2016 Supreme Court ruling on the perjury suit against Cross River State governor, Prof. Ben Ayade, by a Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, governorship aspirant in the 2015 governorship election in the state, Mr. Joe Agi, youths of the state have vowed to resist any attempt to remove the governor through the court. Agi had approached the apex court to nullify the March 28, 2015 governorship election that produced Ayade over alleged age falsification by governor. The youths, under the aegis of National Youth Council of Nigeria, NYCN, who made their position known during a solidarity visit to the state’s Commissioner for Youths and Sports Development, said that any attempt to steal the peoples’ mandate from Ayade through the backdoor would be resisted at all cost. Speaking, state Secretary of NYCN, Ndifon Victor, noted that it became imperative for youths of the state to speak out after the recent twist in the case which saw counsel to PDP adopting the application of Agi that Ayade should be removed from office. He said: “We want to warn that we will resist any attempt by anybody to steal the mandate of the youths and people of Cross River State through the backdoor.
Reacting on the above, Mr. Roland Ipuole said, I saw and learnt that some youths in CRS under the aegis of NYCN protested on Sunday the 2nd of October, 2016 and warned anybody including the Supreme Court planning to unsit our "digital Governor ".I know this kind of action will take place. My opinion on this is that we should allow the law to take its course. As I earlier posited, that no amount of money can change the minds of the Supreme Court Justices from ruling either ways,Joe or Ayade.Not even the number of street protests can influence the judgement. Fellow youths, especially members of the NYCN, let us be wise as a serpent and gentle as a dove like Jesus admonished us. Let us not heat up the polity. Let us not also trade our future for selfish interest. This is the time that politicians will come and use us as usual to achieve their aims. Supporters of both litigants (Joe & Ayade) will go and lie to their masters that they can mobilise people to protest and monies will be doled out for that purpose. Thus, these intermediaries will become millionaires through us (youths). Have we, the youths of this country not enlightened enough to know that the elders with due respect to them, do not have our political interest at heart? How long will we play thuggery? How long will we snatch ballot boxes? How long will we build podium for campaign? When will our positions changed from personal assistants(PAs)? When will the future be in our hands? How long shall we stay at home without jobs after graduation from school? How many youths empowerment has taken place since this dispensation either federal or state, because Local Govt is now a dead zone. Dear youths, you may not understand how I feel, but let us not make ourselves objects of political usages and getting political relevances only during crisis when we will be given a "bottle of beer" for a job well done. The era of political blindness is over. The era where politicians will use the children of the poor to fight their aspirations while their children are in foreign lands is over. Have we the youths protesting now considered the consequence of our action incase the other man wins the case? Will he be the Governor of the "old" alone or both? Will there still be a body called NYCN? Anyway, that isn't my palava. My concern is that our youths should be left alone not to join issues with anybody. Let them fight their fight. We only wish both litigants success in their battle before the supreme Court. Any youths who has ears let them hear. He concluded by rephrasing the Biblical saying, "Oh! that today you listen to my advice, harden not your hearts".
To really confirm the alleged fear of using the youths for their political gains, Mrs. Ayade last week Thursday just after the Supreme Court fixed the December 9th date visited the University of Calabar where she is studying for her LLB and gathered some youths near the Faculty of Law and address them. Assuring them that her husband can't be removed from office. She later gave them 50k to mobilize support for the husband in the form of street rallies. She promise to give them another 450k if they stage a rally in support of Ayade. A beneficiary of the 50k who revealed this say he felt intellectually jogged like being bought over for few crispy notes of Naira. What if what happened didn't, will she have given any of them money to stage a rally. For him, he felt, they should be moved by Ayade's good deeds not being bought over like Christmas goats. Hence, it doesn't appeal to his conscience to participate in such activities of a desperate person. If she is so sure that her husband will not be removed and things were in order, there should have been no need to start doling monies out to save face.
All said and awaiting the end of the gestation period of the pregnant case of Agi SAN cum Ayade. What is more worrisome is the total refusal of certain persons not to heat up the polity. What a lot of persons do not know is that certain protest incur the wrath of the law and the law as we know will act irrespective of the persons involved. The youths who have over the years been maligned, remain flat-footed and marginalized should not take the laws into their hands by biting more than they can chew. Supporting your principal is in order but it should be with the application of the principles of moderation.
Daniel Agbor
Writes from Calabar
